EBOV species of the Ebolavirus genus; causes severe hemorrhagic fever in humans and mammals.
The Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo is being driven by the Bundibugyo virus. It has declared a public health emergency; more than 550 cases have been confirmed, with 101 deaths and 19 recoveries. Health workers face attacks, local scepticism, and armed conflict that hinder containment. Cases are concentrated in Ituri, with spread to North Kivu and South Kivu and across the border into Uganda. Vaccines and treatments remain unavailable for this strain.
Frontline workers at Ituri’s Ebola response facilities have struck over unpaid wages as the Bundibugyo outbreak expands to more provinces. The situation adds strain to an already overwhelmed health system, with clinics at capacity and mistrust hampering containment efforts. New cases have been confirmed in Haut-Uele and Tshopo, raising the outbreak’s regional footprint.
The Bundibugyo-strain Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has reached over 4,000 confirmed cases with about 1,900 deaths, and is progressing at an unprecedented rate. Health workers face unpaid wages, security threats and misinformation while WHO and Africa CDC coordinate trials and vaccination efforts amid a volatile security situation.
CEPI has awarded up to $16.5m to Minapharm to advance a Bundibugyo-specific Ebola vaccine through lab work and into a Phase I trial expected to take place in Africa. The DRC has received an initial 16,250 doses of Ervebo from a 70,000-dose allocation; 20,000 doses will enter a Phase III trial and 50,000 are earmarked for frontline and health workers as the outbreak has topped 5,600 cases and over 2,700 deaths.
The Congo outbreak has recorded thousands of cases across six provinces. Frontline health workers are receiving Ervebo vaccination, while the international response reports soaring transmission and ambitious containment efforts amid insecurity.